Christopher John Fuller is an emeritus professor of
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...
at the
London School of Economics
, mottoeng = To understand the causes of things
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £240.8 million (2021)
, budget = £391.1 millio ...
and a
Fellow of the British Academy
Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are:
# Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom
# C ...
. He has studied and written extensively about the people of India, particularly with regard to subjects such as
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
, the
caste system
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
, and the relationship between
globalisation
Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
and the middle-classes.
Career
Fuller was a lecturer in the Department of Social Anthropology at the
University of Manchester
, mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity
, established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...
prior to holding a similar position as lecturer in anthropology at the London School of Economics (LSE) between 1979–87. He was a
reader
A reader is a person who reads. It may also refer to:
Computing and technology
* Adobe Reader (now Adobe Acrobat), a PDF reader
* Bible Reader for Palm, a discontinued PDA application
* A card reader, for extracting data from various forms of ...
in anthropology at the LSE between 1987–94 and has been an emeritus professor of anthropology there since 2009.
Fuller's primary area of
field research
Field research, field studies, or fieldwork is the collection of raw data outside a laboratory, library, or workplace setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines. For example, biologists who conduct fie ...
has been the state of
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
, particularly between 1976–2001 at the Hindu temple in
Madurai
Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...
that is dedicated to
Minakshi
Meenakshi (Sanskrit: ; Tamil: ; sometimes spelled as Minakshi; also known as , and ), is a Hindu goddess and tutelary deity of Madurai who is considered an avatar of the Goddess Parvati also referred to as Durga. She is the divine consort o ...
. His first fieldwork was among the
Nair
The Nair , also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom histor ...
and
Syrian Christian communities of Kerala in 1971–72. Fuller has also conducted fieldwork in
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
(middle-class managers and software professionals, 2003–05) and on
Tamil Brahmin
Tamil Brahmins are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, predominantly living in Tamil Nadu, though they number significantly in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, in addition to other regions of India, as wel ...
s (2005–08). Other areas of research have examined popular Hinduism and
Hindu nationalism
Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expression of social and political thought, based on the native spiritual and cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent. "Hindu nationalism" or the correct term ''Hindū rāṣṭ ...
, the caste system and the history of anthropology in
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
.
Fuller was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2007.
Publications
Fuller's many publications include:
*
*
* (co-editor, with
Véronique Bénéï)
*
*
* (with
Haripriya Narasimhan)
*
*
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuller, Chris
Fellows of the British Academy
People associated with the University of Manchester
Academics of the London School of Economics
British anthropologists
Social anthropologists
Historians of India
Date of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)